An AC motor is an electric motor driven by an alternating current (AC). The AC motor commonly consists of two basic parts, an outside stationary stator having coils supplied with alternating current to produce a rotating magnetic field, and an inside rotor attached to the output shaft producing a second rotating magnetic field. The rotor magnetic field may be produced by permanent magnets, reluctance saliency, or DC or AC electrical windings.

Less commonly, linear AC motors operate on similar principles as rotating motors but have their stationary and moving parts arranged in a straight line configuration, producing linear motion instead of rotation.

When an AC motor is in steady-state rotation (motion), the magnetic fields of the rotor and stator rotate (move) with little or no slippage (near synchrony). The magnetic forces (repulsive and attractive) between the rotor and stator poles create average torque, capable of driving a load at rated speed. The speed of the stator rotating magnetic field and the speed of the rotor rotating magnetic field, relative to the speed of the mechanical shaft, must maintain synchronism for average torque production by satisfying the synchronous speed relation. Otherwise, asynchronously rotating magnetic fields would produce pulsating or non-average torque.

The two main types of AC motors are classified as induction and synchronous. The induction motor (or asynchronous motor) always relies on a small difference in speed between the stator rotating magnetic field and the rotor shaft speed called slip to induce rotor current in the rotor AC winding. As a result, the induction motor cannot produce torque near synchronous speed where induction (or slip) is irrelevant or ceases to exist. In contrast, the synchronous motor does not rely on slip-induction for operation and uses either permanent magnets, salient poles (having projecting magnetic poles), or an independently excited rotor winding. The synchronous motor produces its rated torque at exactly synchronous speed. The brushless wound-rotor doubly fed synchronous motor system has an independently excited rotor winding that does not rely on the principles of slip-induction of current. The brushless wound-rotor doubly fed motor is a synchronous motor that can function exactly at the supply frequency or sub to super multiple of the supply frequency.

Other types of motors include eddy current motors, and also AC/DC mechanically commutated machines in which speed is dependent on voltage and winding connection.